1 Which of the following best summarizes the main idea of "since feeling is first"? Love is but an illusion. Both in love and in life, you must prioritize feeling over thinking. You must be conscious of the consequences of your actions. Wisdom is the highest virtue. 2 What does "syntax" stand for in the poem? Emotion Inefficiency Reason Love 3 Why is the person "who pays any attention to the syntax of things" unable to "wholly kiss" the addressee? Because this person has a short attention span Because this person is too emotional for the addressee Because the addressee dislikes people who study syntax and grammar Because a kiss requires feeling, and this person prioritizes reason over feeling 4 Which of the following best describes the form and meter of this poem? Blank verse Sonnet Free verse Ballad meter 5 Which of the following is not a major theme of this poem? Religion Love Life and death Language 6 Which of the following does NOT contain an example of alliteration or consonance? "laugh, leaning” “eyelids’ flutter” “feeling is first” “death i think is no parenthesis” 7 What is ironic about this poem? It is not actually about feeling. We know, but the speaker does not, that this love is going to fail. The speaker does not actually love the addressee. Cummings uses syntax to write this poem. 8 Which of the following best describes the structure of this poem? Loose; resisting a narrative structure Following a linear narrative Evocative of the structure of another poem Heavily based on repetition 9 Which of the following is a personification? "kisses are a better fate" "life's not a paragraph" “my blood approves" "i swear by all flowers" 10 Which of the following does NOT accurately describe the tone of the speaker? Affectionate Assertive Philosophical Pessimistic 11 Which of the following best describes the setting of the poem? Intergalactic Unspecified, abstract Urban Pastoral 12 Which of the following is not an example of synecdoche in this poem? "Spring is in the world" “my blood” “my brain” “your eyelids’” 13 "Spring" symbolize which of the following? Fertility, vitality, and youth Death, trauma, and pain Aging, senility, and vulnerability War, violence, and discord 14 Which of the following is NOT a symbolic meaning that "flowers" may have in this poem? Ephemerality Fertility Nature Artificiality 15 Which of the following best describes the word play between "Spring" and "blood"? "Blood" can "spring" forth. "Spring" is a "bloody" season. Hot water "springs" are good for "blood" circulation. The speaker is trying to be resilient like a "spring" after witnessing "bloodshed" and violence. 16 What does the speaker mean when they say "death i think is no parenthesis"? Death is something that can be ignored. Death is an inevitable part of the human experience. What happens after death is a mystery. Death is not something we should keep in mind in everyday life. 17 How is the lady's attitude different from that of the speaker? She believes in logic and reason. She is less optimistic. She is more religious. She is more aggressive. 18 "since feeling is first" was published in which of the following books? EIMI is 5 Tulips & Chimneys The Enormous Room 19 In what year was this poem published? 1916 1936 1946 1926 20 Which of the following best describes the collection in which this poem was published? Traditional and conforming Experimental and unconventional Violent and gory Kitsch and cheesy 21 Which of the following is an example of mathematical language within the poem? "we are for each other" "[...] is less than [...]" "wholly to be a fool" "i swear by all flowers" 22 Which of the following INCORRECTLY describes the use of the word "wholly" in the poem? It is repeated twice. It is evocative of the word "holy." It evokes a sense of holiness and sacredness in addition to perfection. It is used in an alliteration. 23 "the best gesture of my brain is less than / your eyelids’ flutter" is an example of which of the following? Asyndeton Personification Alliteration Synecdoche 24 "laugh, leaning back in my arms / for life’s not a paragraph" does NOT contain which of the following? Alliteration Metaphor Sarcasm Synecdoche 25 Which of the following INCORRECTLY describes the use of the word "paragraph" in this poem? It is antithetical to the word "syntax" in an earlier stanza. It is parallel to the word "parenthesis" in the subsequent line. It may symbolize the simplicity of linguistic constructs. It may symbolize the artificiality of linguistic constructs.